Pronunciation – 2 Lesson3

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PRONUNCIATION – 2 Lesson  3

1.Pronouncing Consonants

2.Tongue Twisters

3.Polite Phrases – 2

4.Conversation Examples

5.Exercises

 

Lesson 3

PRONUNCIATION – 2

1. PRONOUNCING CONSONANTS

 

In the English language, every word is a combination of vowels and consonants, hence, both, the vowels and consonants are important. Remember that no word can be formed without a vowel in it.

The combination of a vowel with a consonant or the vice versa produces a syllable. And a word is a group of so-formed syllables.

Today we are going to focus on how to pronounce consonants.

The letters of the alphabet excluding the vowels are called consonants..

Consonants like B, D, K, P can be pronounced in only one way.

But few of others are pronounced in two or more different ways according the letter preceding or succeeding it.

In some cases you can expect to follow a pattern, but in certain cases, one has to remember the different ways the consonants are pronounced. So it needs a lot of practice.

Consonants like C, F, G, S, T etc., are pronounced in two or more ways. So, now let us see the consonants that have two or more ways of sounds.

 

1.PRONOUNCING ‘c’

 

The consonant ‘c’ has an s-sound, k-sound, sh- and an ik-sound in different places. Now let us see where they occur. (Please follow your instructor, to get the right sounds.)

a) If you have an ‘e’, ‘i’ or ‘y’ following the consonant ‘c’, it sounds like an ‘s’.

—–>  à ce, ci, cy

receive, rice, piece, certify, force

cinema, circle, citizen

cyclone, cyber

b)If you have ‘a’, ‘l’, ‘o’, ‘u’, ‘r’, ‘k’ or ‘t’ following the ‘c’, it sounds more like ‘ka’.

—–>à ca, cl, co, cu, cr, ck, ct

cap, candy                                             clot, clay, cloud

cot, cow                                                  cut, cup, cub

crate, cruel, crime                                  crack, track

pact, fact, practical

c)If you have ‘ia’ or ‘ea’ following the ‘c’ à cia, cea  à it sounds like an ‘sh’.

social, musician, ocean

d)If a word ends with ‘c’, it sounds like an ‘ik’.

pacific, public, tropic

Now try pronouncing the following words correctly:

cap, ice, cub, crib, receive, couple, cyclops, niece, topic, custom, clay, cupid, peace, Titanic, cyclonic, lock, clotting, curse, cape, society, circle, cutting, piece, back, club, track, century, truck, cattle, cinema, certificate, clone

 

2.PRONOUNCING ‘g’

 

The consonant ‘g’ has ‘ij’ and ‘ik’/ ‘ig’ sounds in different places. Now let us see where they occur.

a) If you have ‘e’ following the consonant ‘g’   à ge à it sounds like an ‘ij’.

age, wage, stage, page, gauge, beige

b) The same sound occurs in a few words, even when there is no ‘e’ following ‘g’.

gist, imagine, gin

c) If you have ‘g’ following an ‘n’ à ng à it sounds like an ‘ing’, with a deep sound.

bang, dung, fang, finger, bring, hanger

d)    If a word begins with a ‘g’, it sounds like a ‘ga’, with a deep sound.

gun, gap, game, give, get, gold

e)     If a word ends with a ‘g’, it sounds like an ‘ig’, with a deep sound.

big, bag, bug, stag, tug, tag

Now try pronouncing the following words correctly:

stage, badge, germ, gap, goitre, big, bag, bug, flag, tug, tag, game, forge, gold, bang, dung, fang, finger, bring, hanger, gem, ginger, gone

 

3. PRONOUNCING ‘s’

 

The consonant ‘s’ has an ‘s’, ‘z’ and a ‘sh’ sound in different places. Now let us see where they occur.

a)     If you have ‘s’ following ‘be’, ‘g’, ‘ee’, ‘ge’, ‘ie’, ‘le’, ‘ef’, ‘y’, it sounds like ‘z’.

—->bes, gs, ees, ges, ies, les, efs, ys

tribes, vibes                                          bags, tags, wags, bugs, digs

bees, trees, fees                                   ages, stages, bridges

stories, fairies, ties                                tables, cables, stables

briefs, chefs                                          boys, lays, brays

b)    If you have ‘s’ following ‘f’, ‘p’, ‘ke’, ‘le’, ‘pe’, ‘te’ or ‘ght’, it sounds like ‘s’.

—->fs, ps, kes, les, pes, tes, ghts

roofs, puffs                                            drops, stops, taps

lakes, brakes, cakes                           stables, tables,  fables

tapes, shapes                                       kites, sites

lights, fights

c) If you have ‘s’ or ‘ss’ followed by ‘ia’ or ‘ion’, it sounds like a ‘sh’.

—-> sia, ssia, sion, ssion

Asia                                                         Russia

lesion, pension                                     session, aggression

Now try pronouncing the following words correctly:

bribes, badges, beagles, beautifies, toys, heroines, stories, fables, rays, hopes, hubs, hives, caves, tools, boys, fools, various, studious

 

4. PRONOUNCING ‘t’

 

The consonant ‘t’ has a ‘sh’, ‘cha’ and a ‘th’ sound in different words. Now let us see where they occur.

a)If you have ‘t’ followed by ‘ia’, ‘ie’, ‘io’   -> tia, tie, tio -> it sounds like a ‘sh’.

initial, partial, differentiate

patient

portion, ratio, dictation

b)If you have ‘s’ followed by ‘tion’   -> stion ->it sounds like a ‘ch’.

question

c) If you have ‘t’ followed by ‘ure’   -> ture  -> it sounds like a ‘ch’.

culture, future, nature

d) If you have ‘t’ followed by ‘h’   ->  th ->it has two sounds, a thinner ‘th’ and a heavier one. Examples are

thick, thin, thread                   (thinner ‘th’)

the, that, thus, there             (heavier ‘th’)

e) Some times, a ‘th’ is also pronounced as ‘t’.

Thames, Thomas

Now try pronouncing the following words correctly: 

taste, toys, tremble, fraction, dictation, capture, tall, friction, then, Thomas, ratio, vulture, culture, picture, promotion, theme, time

 

2. TONGUE TWISTERS

 

A tongue twister is a specific sequence of words whose rapid, repeated pronunciation is sometimes difficult even for the native speakers. Often these are similar words which follow one another but differ in certain syllables. In addition, some tongue twisters are difficult because of their unusual word composition (sentence structure) and therefore require a high level of concentration.

Some Tongue twisters are made for amusement, but on the other hand, professional speakers such as actors, politicians, and television/ radio hosts use them as articulation exercises.

Tongue twisters are a great way to practice and improve pronunciation and fluency. They can also help to improve accents by using alliteration, which is the repetition of one sound.

Below are tongue twisters, which will help you get your ‘s’ and  ‘sh’ sounds right. Repeat them as quickly as you can.

a)She sells sea shells on the seashore.

b)Susie works in a shoeshine shop. Where she shines she sits, where she sits she shines.

c)She sews pre-shrunk silk shirts.

If you can master tongue twisters, you will be a much more confident speaker.

 

3. POLITE PHRASES – 2

 

Knowing how to apologize is an important part of being polite. You probably already know the word “sorry”, but there are many other ways to apologize in English.

1.  SAYING ‘SORRY’

Apologizing for small mistakes – This is a very informal and a simple way of saying sorry

a) I am sorry!

b)Sorry about that!

Saying sorry to friends, for silly mistakes

c) Whoops! Sorry!

d) Oh, my bad!

e) My fault.

f)Sorry. Can’t. Busy!

Apologizing when you make a more serious mistake – For a more serious mistake, especially in customer service situations, you might say:

g)     I’m so sorry!

h)    I apologize!

Apologizing for incorrect information – If you cause a problem with communication, or give incorrect information, you might say:

i)My mistake.

j)I had that wrong.

k)I was wrong on that.

l)My apologies.

Making a formal or serious apology – If you make a serious mistake with a friend, loved one, or coworker, you shouldn’t use casual language to apologize. Try a more formal apology, such as:

m)I’d like to apologize.

n) I want to apologize.

o) I owe you an apology.

p)I wanted to tell you I’m sorry.

After these phrases, you can add “for (doing something/ how I… / what I…)”:

q)I’d like to apologize for how I reacted yesterday.

r)I hope you can forgive me for what I said that day.

Writing a formal apology – We use the most formal English in writing. In this situation, you could use these phrases:

s) sincerely apologize.

t)I take full responsibility.

You may want to complete the sentences with one of these phrases:

… for any problems I may have caused.

… for my behavior/ my actions.

1.SAYING SORRY/ PARDON

Sorry is also used in other places like when you don’t hear somebody, quite well. This happens a lot in everyday life – when talking to friends, colleagues, people who have different accents.

So, when you want convey it to someone that what they said is not clear and you want them to repeat, you ask this in a few different ways.

One word which was commonly used in this situation was Pardon, but as now it has become old-fashioned, it is no longer in use.

Some people say What? – but remember, this is a rude way to ask them to repeat, and so is Eh? Or Uh?.

ASKING SOMEONE TO REPEAT IN A SIMPLE WAY

a)Sorry?

b)Sorry! Could you say that again?

c)Sorry! I didn’t catch/ hear what you said?

ASKING SOMEONE TO SPEAK LOUDER OR SLOWER

d)Sorry, could you speak up, please?

e)Sorry, could you speak more slowly, please?

ASKING SOMEONE ABOUT WHAT A WORD IN THEIR SENTENCE MEANS

f)Sorry, I don’t know that word.

g)Sorry, could you tell me what it means, please.

In addition to saying Sorry?, you can also use Excuse me? and Pardon? (or Pardon me?) to ask someone to repeat what they said. In this case, you should use a rising question intonation.

ANOTHER CONTEXT FOR USING SORRY

There are a few situations where English speakers (especially Canadians) say sorry, but they aren’t really apologizing. For example, when you need to pass someone in a crowded place, it’s common to say sorry, but you can also say:
Pardon me/ Excuse me

2.SAYING SORRY/ PARDON

Sorry is also used in other places like when you don’t hear somebody, quite well. This happens a lot in everyday life – when talking to friends, colleagues, people who have different accents.

So, when you want convey it to someone that what they said is not clear and you want them to repeat, you ask this in a few different ways.

One word which was commonly used in this situation was Pardon, but as now it has become old-fashioned, it is no longer in use.

Some people say What? – but remember, this is a rude way to ask them to repeat, and so is Eh? Or Uh?.

ASKING SOMEONE TO REPEAT IN A SIMPLE WAY

a)Sorry?

b)Sorry! Could you say that again?

c)Sorry! I didn’t catch/ hear what you said?

ASKING SOMEONE TO SPEAK LOUDER OR SLOWER

d)Sorry, could you speak up, please?

e)Sorry, could you speak more slowly, please?

ASKING SOMEONE ABOUT WHAT A WORD IN THEIR SENTENCE MEANS

f)Sorry, I don’t know that word.

g)Sorry, could you tell me what it means, please.

In addition to saying Sorry?, you can also use Excuse me? and Pardon? (or Pardon me?) to ask someone to repeat what they said. In this case, you should use a rising question intonation.

ANOTHER CONTEXT FOR USING SORRY

There are a few situations where English speakers (especially Canadians) say sorry, but they aren’t really apologizing. For example, when you need to pass someone in a crowded place, it’s common to say sorry, but you can also say:
Pardon me/ Excuse me

 

4.CONVERSATION EXAMPLES

5. EXERCISES

 

TRY PRONOUNCING

Please pronounce the following words one by one. Also increase speed, when you feel confident. Try reading this aloud, over and over under the guidance of your teacher, in order to avoid incorrect pronunciation.

cap, ice, cub, cupid, peace, cyclonic, stage, badge, germ, gap, goitre, big, bag, bug, stag, tug, tag, game, truck, crib, receive, truck, cattle, clone, couple, cyclone, bribes, badges, bangles, beautifies, toys, heroines, stories, niece, topic, custom, cinema, certificate, clay, finger, bring, hanger, curious, peace, dictation, capture, tall, friction, pelvic, club, track, century, triangles, rays, hopes, hubs,hives, shaves, tools, boys, fools, various, studious, ratio, nation, national, vulture, taste, toys, tremble, courage, drastic, house, brush, ration

BUILDING A CONVERSATION

You are working in a firm. Your boss is busy.

You have come back from a vacation. In the meantime, a new project has been assigned to you. So you need to ask him about the new project assigned to you.

 

 

TONGUE TWISTERS

a)I slit the sheet, the sheet I slit, and on the slitted sheet I sit.

b)I wish to wash my Irish wrist watch.

TOPICS TO DISCUSS

a)About yourself, your likes and dislikes

b)Everyday situations where you can use Thank you phrases

c)Everyday situations where you can use Sorry phrases